A Historical Fact
as early as the fourth century. Bishops were being bought and sold. People from Ephesus journeyed to Constantinople to a bishop that could be trusted. John Chrysostom was asked to clean up the mess. It was the beginning of the fifth century. He reluctantly agreed.
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A Cottage Industry
that is out of control. Private interpretation of what is written too often is predicting the future because they do not know how to read the past. Your interpretation belongs in the future only because it doesn’t fit in history. Chances are you are not a prophet and need to limit yourself to history.
A Warning
that you can’t believe what you find on the internet. Duh? So what can you believe? A reasonable explanation when there is no alternative to a situation that demands an answer. What is a reasonable explanation? Something that is consistent with historical events.
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A Reliable Copy
of the Apocalypse. We know that John Chrysostom was in Ephesus when Jerome was finishing the Vulgate. Who in Ephesus could be trusted? Certainly not the seven bishops Chrysostom was replacing. Jerome knew all the major players and must have known Chrysostom was someone you could trust.
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A Bible
you can trust. That was Jerome’s job. It is safe to say no two bibles were alike before Jerome so it was his job to first find reliable copies of the books that belonged in the Bible before he could produce a reliable translation. At that time it was not clear which ones belonged and that was especially true with the Apocalypse. Before Jerome we don’t know what it looked like.
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A Major Player
in the 4th century and we have the letters to prove it. Pope Damasus I asked Jerome for a new translation of the Bible and Augustine was upset about that. There were already way too many versions of the Bible with way too many errors and according to Augustine the last thing they needed was another version of the Bible. Jerome was not intimidated. His Vulgate would become the official Bible of the Church when they needed it the most.
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A Revelation
that the time is near. The time was near for the first coming 2000 years ago. The time is now near for the second. All the signs are there. Are you ready? You may now have time to reflect. Use it. There is not much future left.
A Good Question
that needs an answer. Many believe it doesn’t belong in the Bible. They don’t think it was written by John the Apostle. John Chrysostom was one of them but he was in Ephesus at the beginning of the fifth century and he had a chance to maybe look at the originals. Before this we do not know what the Apocalypse looked like. At this time Jerome was finishing the Vulgate which would become the official Bible of the Church.
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A Message
to all seven churches. Listen if you have an ear. Every man will be judged according to their works. This does not require interpretation and it makes sense. Even a child understands that they might be punished for what they do. Parents will teach them that. Right?
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apocalypse 